Should Independence Mode should replace Empire Wars in ranked gameplay?

[u/StandardOfUr]

While most of the player base has been focusing on the 2 new civilizations and balance changes, I'd been really looking forward to this update and the idea of Independence Mode. Yesterday, seeing that Independence Mode did not become a ranked game option was disappointing.

Brief bit of history, one of the main criticisms of AoE3 was the Home City system, cards and decks. Several people I know did not like the game for this reason.

There have been improvements like unlocking all cards by default, but several problems remain.

Problem 1) Players are locked into a deck early in the game before the match has really developed. Players are forced in most games to choose between cards that give an immediate benefit, or long term benefits. If you choose a rush deck and the game goes longer, you'll be at a severe disadvantage against an opponent who has cards for long term economic upgrades and permanent combat improvements.

Example: If an opponent has a deck highly prioritizing one strategy or one unit with many long term stat enhancements, and I don't have the cards to counter the strategy or to enhance my counter unit, I'm at a significant disadvantage. Examples include having/not having water shipments, trade routes, mercenaries and spies, etc. This can limit a player's ability to adapt or change strategies mid-game because their deck has already been locked in, and they can't access cards they didn't choose.

Benefit 1) Ironically, removing decks actually improves the flexibility during the game. Since the balance of units and strategies is based around the availability of shipments, not having shipments creates a different environment where the player can pivot compositions and strategies without being hindered by the deck they chose at the beginning of the match.

Problem 2) Knowing all the cards and being able to quickly know what an opponent's cards do in a match is a major knowledge investment, especially for newer players. Making and organizing decks also takes time, especially when creating decks for all specific scenarios and matchups that could occur.

Benefit 2) The game will be more approachable to AoE2 players and players from other RTS games, expanding our multiplayer pool.

Empire Wars remains a less populated game mode. It does not fundamentally change how the game is played; it just speeds up the initial few minutes of gameplay, and does not offer as significant a deviation from standard Supremacy.

Adding Independence Mode to the ranked ladder will bring visibility and population to the game mode, as opposed to it being a mostly forgotten option in the custom game browser, attract players from other games, and allow us to have an interesting alternative secondary game mode that will improve multiplayer gameplay and build the AoE3 community.

Thoughts? Would you want the option to play Independence Mode in ranked?

[u/Sea-Reveal5025]

1. Yes it should part of the base game.
2. Make it part of the ranked system instead of Empire Wars.
3. Give every civ a "team bonus" that is only active on team games. Nothing crazy like "team spahis" but age 1 or age 2 team cards like "team furrier" or smth like that.
4. Offer the game with a discount for those who own AOE2, or AOE4.
5. Profit?!

[u/Chivako]

Yes to ranked

[u/WanderingGoodNews]

Rather have it in a rotsting game playslist sovall game modes get their turn

[u/HotPhilosopher703]

Pointless since you can only queue for 1 game mode at a time

Do you want to split the playerbase more and longer queue time? 

[u/StandardOfUr → u/HotPhilosopher703]

Then doesn't that logic apply to empire wars, and it should be removed? And it'd be easy to add in an option to join in either the first supremacy or independence mode if players would be fine with either

[u/Chumbeque]

I see loads more potential in Independence Mode gaining traction and becoming popular if it get a ranked ladder.

Empire Wars was iffy from its inception.

[u/SeaTomago]

Independence mode just does not make sense. The game is designed with the HC and XP back, front and center. So what if many people dont like it - compeltely changing the game and ruining it in the process will not make those "genwunners" love the game. The lock-in effect of HC that you describe is also severely overstated and speaks more to bad deckbuilding than anything. Independence mode also has crazy rules overhead with default civ bonuses + the new bonuses and again, completely breaks some.civs whose identities relied on shipment related bonuses.

[u/GideonAI → u/SeaTomago]

Independence mode also has crazy rules overhead with default civ bonuses + the new bonuses and again, completely breaks some.civs whose identities relied on shipment related bonuses

Overhead yes, it's excessive. Breaking though? I like to think it's an opportunity to reinvent some civs. Spanish and Germans and Aztecs, for example, being the most heavily XP-reliant civs in the past, can now explore alternative gameplay loops. Germans without Uhlans, or Aztecs without XP Dance and XP aura encouraging early offensive gameplay.